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LOT 1803
Byzantine 'Greek Fire' Ceramic Fire Bomb or Hand Grenade
9TH-11TH CENTURY A.D.
4 1/8 in. (370 grams, 10.4 cm).
Ovoid in profile with domed filler hole; intended to be filled with explosive liquid and a wick, and used as a hand grenade. [No Reserve]
ProvenanceFrom an important specialist collection, London, UK, 1990s onwards.
Accompanied by an academic paper by military specialist Dr Raffaele D'Amato, dated 15 July 2019 and titled 'Eastern Roman Empire - Greek Fire Bomb or Hand Grenade (μεσαίον kακάβιον) 9th-11th century AD'.
Apart from the use of siphons or manual flame-throwers called cheirosiphona, special corps of Roman soldiers employed terracotta grenades, in the form of small jars, abundantly evidenced in archaeological excavations. They were called μεσαία kακαβιά or κυτροκακάβια where the former had a bulbous shape and the latter a more cylindrical form.
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AUCTIONS:
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LOT 1803
Byzantine 'Greek Fire' Ceramic Fire Bomb or Hand Grenade
Sold for (Inc. bp): £85
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Western Asiatic Bronze Socketted Axehead
2nd-1st millennium B.C.Sold for (Inc. bp): £72
With flat blade a curved cutting edge, hammered round-section tubular socket. 112 grams, 10.8 cm
Ex Abelita family collection, 1980s-2000s. -
Roman to Medieval Iron Arrowhead Collection
3rd-14th century A.D.Sold for (Inc. bp): £208
Mixed group of tanged arrowheads, one a swallowtail type. 72 grams total, 6.8-14.9 cm
Ex German art market, 2000s. Acquired from an EU collector living in London. From the collection of a Surrey, UK, gentleman. -
Western Asiatic Bronze Arrowhead Collection
2nd-1st millennium B.C.Sold for (Inc. bp): £312
Comprising leaf-shaped and triangular tanged arrowheads, most with a raised midrib. 238 grams total, 8.1-18.7 cm
London, UK, collection, 1990s.
All these bronze typologies of arrowheads were cast in moulds. Similar specimens have been found in Northwest and West Iran, Azerbaijan, Luristan and Amlash. Most of these blades are bipartite, but the definition of the bipartite type is not absolute, as it brings together weapons of very different and unrelated designs. In fact, some weapons do not have a sufficiently characteristic shape to be interpreted as a javelin or long arrowhead.
